Was it al-Qaeda? Security agencies still clueless over Indian Railways cyber hack

The cyber attack on Indian Railways’ Railnet page, which was purportedly hacked by al-Qaeda, has left security agencies puzzled.

Agencies are yet to establish whether the cyber attack was launched by al-Qaeda or tech-savvy ISIS supporters spreading their web in the country by recruiting youths for global jihad over the internet.

The microsite of the Bhusawal division of the Central Railway's Personnel Department was hacked on Wednesday.

Extremist groups have previously used hacking as a way to raise interest in global jihad among Indian youths (Picture for representation only)

It is part of a large intranet created for the department’s administrative operations and was replaced by a message from al-Qaeda’s South Asia chief Maulana Aasim Umar.

“Why is there no storm in your ocean? A message for Muslims of India from Maulana Aasim Umar (May Allah protect him),” the message read.

The message first surfaced in 2013 in a video featuring Umar, and terror outfits have since used it repeatedly to propagate terror.

The 11-page document is available on many websites, some of which have been blocked by Indian agencies. The case is being investigated by the Jalong Police after a complaint by railway officials.

“We have registered the case under various sections of IT Act and our cyber unit is investigating the case. It would be too early to say if this is the work of a terror organisation,” Jalinder Supekar, SP, Jalong Police, told Mail Today over the phone.

Officials have restored the webpage and are not disclosing the scale of loss suffered during the breach, but the attack has exposed loopholes in the government network and also the skills of hackers associated with terror outfits.

Security agencies are probing whether the attack was the work of ISIS in the name of al-Qaeda.

“We are tracking some of the IP addresses which could be crucial in this case. The attack came from within the country,” a senior official said, without disclosing which terror outfit was behind it.